Brave Southport were cruelly denied a slice of FA Cup magic after Championship high flyers Derby County scored an injury time winner in a pulsating third round tie.

The non leaguers bravely withstood wave after wave of pressure from the home side who looked resigned to a reply until referee Graham Scott pointed the spot in the 93rd minute following skipper Luke Foster's foul on Johnny Russell.

Despite the 89 places between the two sides, the Sandgrounders more than held their own in the opening 45 minutes as they comfortable repelled most of what former England manager Steve McClaren's Derby side had to offer.

It was not until the 20th minute that the Rams created a clear cut opening when Craig Bryson wriggled free in the Southport area and curled a shot against the inside of keeper David Raya Martin's far post with Leon Best wasteful from the rebound.

From then on Foster marshalled his defence superbly as the side lying 20th in the Conference dug in for a war of attrition which led to howls of frustration from the Derby fans and increasingly wayward finishing from the Rams.

When Derby did create an opening, Raya Martin was there to stop them as the Spanish teenager began constructing the kind of performance that FA Cup legends are made of.

A wonderful double save just after the hour mark to deny first Craig Bryson and then Simon Dawkins was probably the highlight but a brilliant diving clearance from Paul Coutts' long range drive was right up there as the Spainard, on loan from Blackburn Rovers, gave a master class in the art of goal keeping.

With the away side's confidence growing, Southport began to create their own chances with Richard Brodie and Foster both heading wide.

As the minutes ticked down, a replay began to look inevitable until McClaren's triple substitution half way through the second period paid off with first team regulars Chris Martin, Russell and Liverpool loanee Jordan Ibe piling on late pressure.

In the third minute of injury time, a mazy run from Russell forced Foster into a rash challenge, leaving Martin to bury the resulting penalty and break the hearts of the 2,700 Sandgrounders who had not stopped singing from the moment the whistle blew.

It was cruel, but Southport FC could hold their heads up high as they left the pitch to a standing ovation from both sets of supporters.